The First Sunday in Lent

March 9, 2025

Luke 4:1-13

God’s Surprising Strategies—

One Stands; Everyone Else Sits!

1Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, 2where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.

3The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”

4Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’”

5The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7So if you worship me, it will all be yours.”

8Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’”

9The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 10For it is written:

“ ‘He will command his angels concerning you
to guard you carefully;
11they will lift you up in their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

12Jesus answered, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

13When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time. (NIV1984)

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

One of the things that should never surprise us is that our God is a Planner. God had a Plan for how He was going to create the heavens and the earth. God had a Plan on how He was going to save His children when they rebelled against Him. God had a Plan as to how He would set aside and preserve the descendants of Abraham to be His Chosen People. God had a Plan as to how the promise of the Messiah would be handed down from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to great King David. God had a Plan as to how His eternally begotten Son would be born into this world as the true Son of Man. And as the Season of Lent reminds us, God had a Plan as to how He would save us from our sins. (Pointing to the cross)

Since our God is a Planner the overall theme for our sermon series during the Season of Lent is very easy for us to understand. That overall theme is: God’s Surprising Strategies! Today let’s see that part of God’s strategy, part of God’s Plan for bringing sinners like us back Home to Him is: One Stands; Everyone Else Sits!

Luke begins our text by making it very clear that Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness was also part of God’s Plan. Look at what he says, “Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the desert, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.”

Jesus’ temptation by Satan took place directly after His baptism in the Jordan River. It was at Jesus’ baptism that God the Holy Spirit came down in the form of a dove and “lighted” on Him. It was at Jesus’ baptism that He was formally anointed to publicly serve as the Christ, as the Promised Messiah. We should also point out here that while Luke only records three temptations, the words “he was tempted by the devil,” very literally says, “He was being tempted by the devil.” For forty days Satan attacked our Savior over and over again. Why? Because Satan was desperate! He did not want Jesus to continue down the road that would lead Him to the cross on Calvary’s hill! Satan was determined to do everything he could to stop Jesus from reaching His goal! (Pointing to the cross)

We, of course, know that Satan was not successful in tempting our Savior to sin. At the same time we would do well to realize that Satan uses this very same tactic on us, doesn’t he. There are days and there are times in our life when Satan relentlessly attacks us over and over again. There are days and there are times when it seems as though Satan is attacking us by having our friends invite us and encourage us to do things that we know are displeasing to our God. There are days and there are times when Satan attacks us by having some of our own family members challenge us on something God clearly teaches us in His holy Word. There are days and there are times when Satan attacks us by having a situation at work or a situation at school test us to see how long we can hold out until we do something or say something that is unchristian. Add to that all the times that Satan attacks us through television or through music or through the Internet. So yes, my friends, there are days and there are times when Satan relentlessly attacks us over and over again. When that happens we dare not depend on our own power or our own strength or our own wit to defeat that roaring lion. Instead we need to run to our Lord, ask Him for His help, and follow the example that He gives to us here in our text. With that strategy in mind let’s look at the three temptations that the Holy Spirit had Luke record for us.

The first temptation is found in verses three and four. Luke writes, “The devil said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.’ Jesus answered, ‘It is written: “Man does not live on bread alone.”’”

There is one thing that we really need to highlight here. Remember that Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness took place immediately after His baptism in the Jordan River. At Jesus’ baptism the heavenly Father declared Him to be the Son of God— “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased” (Luke 3:22). “If you are the Son of God.” With those words Satan was tempting Jesus to doubt what the heavenly Father had proclaimed. “Are you convinced that you are the Son of God? If you are then why would your heavenly Father allow you to suffer such intense hunger after not eating anything for forty days? I thought He was well pleased with you? Look, there is a very easy way to prove that you are the Son of God— “Tell this stone to become bread.”

Through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism you were adopted to be a dearly beloved child of the heavenly Father. Since your status as a child of God is something that God has done for you and not something you decided on your own, your status as a child of God is an established fact. Knowing that when you were baptized the heavenly Father said to you, “You are My son, you are My daughter whom I love; with you I am well pleased,” do not be surprised when Satan tempts you to doubt who you are! When you fail that test, when you don’t get that promotion, when you struggle to pay your bills, when it feels like “nobody” likes you, “nobody” loves you, when it seems as though you are lost in a desert— that is when Satan is going to try his hardest to get you to doubt who you are! “If you are a child of God, then why does He allow these things to happen to you? Is it possible that God doesn’t love you? Is it possible that maybe you aren’t a child of God?” We’ll focus on how to defeat those temptations in just a moment.

When Satan tempted Eve to doubt what God had said to her, “Did God really say…?” Satan won. First Eve and then Adam crumbled under Satan’s temptation, doubted what God had said to them and brought sin down upon the entire human race. Satan was undoubtedly hoping that he could have the same level of success with the “Seed of the Woman” and achieve even more disastrous results. He was wrong! Instead of even thinking about giving in to Satan’s temptation, instead of even thinking about using His divine power to “tell this stone to become bread” and satisfy His intense hunger, Jesus confidently defeated Satan’s temptation by saying, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone.’”

“It is written.” That is the common theme that runs through all of these temptations. “It is written.” That’s the example of how all of God’s sons and how all of God’s daughters can overcome Satan’s temptations. As the Son of God Jesus could have used His divine power to command Satan to leave. If Jesus had done that Satan would have had to leave Jesus alone. But that is not what Jesus did, is it! He defeated Satan’s temptation to doubt what the heavenly Father said by trusting in what the heavenly Father revealed in His Word! That example also applies to us. While we may not always be 100% successful as Jesus was, we can use the Sword of the Spirit to defeat Satan when he tempts us to doubt. Remember how Jesus’ brother James tells us, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7).

The second temptation that Satan used to try and destroy Jesus is found in verses five through eight. Luke writes, “The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, ‘I will give you all their authority and splendor, for it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. So if you worship me, it will all be yours.’ Jesus answered, ‘It is written: “Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’””

Once again we see a parallel between Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness and Eve’s temptation in the garden. Satan is a liar. Later in His ministry Jesus would say concerning Satan, “He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44).

Satan arrogantly claimed that he is the ruler and the owner of all things. Satan arrogantly claims that all the “authority” and all the “splendor” of this world had been “given” to him (by whom?) and that he has the right to give it to Jesus. Satan arrogantly claimed that Jesus could become the great Messiah-King— without all the pain and without all the suffering that Jesus would have to endure if He continued on the road that would lead Him directly to the cross. (Pointing to the cross) There was just one little thing Jesus would have to do first— bow down and worship Satan!

“It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’” Jesus didn’t even think about giving in to this temptation. Jesus didn’t even think about avoiding the pain and the suffering of the cross. Jesus didn’t even think about “worshipping” this liar, this deceiver, this murderer. Jesus knew in His heart and revealed in His life that the only One who deserves to be worshiped is the Lord, the God of heaven and earth!

How many times has Satan tempted you in a very similar way? How many times has Satan dangled the riches and the pleasures of this world in front of your eyes and tried to convince you that all this could be yours if— if you give the things of this world the #1 place in your heart and in your life. Like the Sirens of ancient mythology Satan lures us with something that might be desirable, something that might bring us pleasure, but it’s all a lie. In the end— hopefully not too late!— we realize that it was all a trap. When someone bows down before the riches and the pleasures of this world, when that is what they place in the #1 spot in their heart and in their life— they become Satan’s slaves!

The final temptation that Luke records for us is found in verses nine through twelve. He writes, “The devil led him out to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. ‘If you are the Son of God,’ he said, ‘throw yourself down from here. For it is written: “He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.”’ Jesus answered, ‘It says: “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”’”

Here we see two very powerful things. First, we see the audacity of Satan and the depth of his depravity. It was as though Satan was saying to Jesus; “You who use the Word to answer me— do you really trust that Word? Do you really trust the One who gave that Word? Do you really believe that His Word and His Spirit have designated you as the Messianic-King? If you believe this, then surely the promises He made to all His sons apply especially to you— the Son of God. So jump! Prove that you trust your heavenly Father to fulfill the promise He has made!”

Second, we see the cunning of Satan. Satan conveniently omitted the words “in all your ways,” when quoting from this psalm. Satan was referring to Psalm 91. Specifically, he was referring to Psalm 91:9-12, “If you make the Most High your dwelling— even the LORD, who is my refuge— then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.” Psalm 91 is highlighting the promises that God makes to those who trust Him! Psalm 91 is not a license to do reckless and foolish things anticipating that God will most certainly protect us— no matter what! That’s why Jesus defeated this temptation by saying, “It says: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

There are two warnings for us in the third temptation that Satan brought against our Savior. The first warning reminds us to be careful because Satan and his cohorts are not shy about misusing God’s Word. They are willing to take passages out of context in an effort to get us to violate what God reveals to us in His Word. “God loves everyone and so should you. Don’t get bogged down by what they believe or how they are living their life.” “Jesus wants His church here on this earth to be one— just as He and the Father are one. So concentrate on the “fundamental” teachings of Scripture and agree to disagree on the “minor” things such as infant baptism, the Real Presence of Jesus’ true body and blood in the Sacrament of Holy Communion and how a person becomes a Christian.” This is a very powerful temptation— especially in our day and age when many churches and many denominations are shrinking.

The second warning reminds us to be careful because Satan and his cohorts know that we still have that old sinful nature lurking inside of us. Our old sinful nature will encourage us to “test” our God. “How far can we push the boundaries before we get into trouble?” “Go ahead and join in with your friends— after all, isn’t God’s grace ‘big enough’ to cover those sins?” “Go ahead and max out your credit cards. Didn’t God say that He would provide for you?” “Go ahead and have some fun! You have plenty of time to ask for forgiveness sometime down the road.” “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.” Those are words that we would all do well to remember!

That brings us to the closing verse of our text. Luke tells us, “When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.” While Satan did indeed lose this battle against Jesus out in the desert, he certainly did not concede the war. In a desperate attempt to destroy Jesus before Jesus could destroy him, Satan continued to attack Jesus throughout His life— up to and including when Jesus was nailed to the cross on Calvary’s hill. Remember how even the religious leaders of God’s people mocked Him: “He saved others, but he can’t save himself! He’s the King of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God’” (Mathew 27:41-43).

Satan’s desire to “devour” our soul, Satan’s desire to drag us into hell with him for all of eternity is what motivates him to watch and wait for an “opportune time” to shoot one of his “flaming arrows” at us. We need to always be prepared. We need to always be alert. We need to always remember Paul’s encouragement to us, “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes” (Ephesians 6:10, 11).

With the eyes of faith we see one Man, our Brother Jesus, stand and fight our most powerful enemy, Satan. All we can do is sit and watch with eyes filled with wonder and hearts filled with faith. By faith we know that because Jesus fought that battle as one of us, He won that battle for all of us. The gate to heaven now stands wide open for everyone who believes and trusts in Him! (Pointing to the cross)

To God be the glory!

Amen